December 30, 2010

This month has certainly been a busy one around the Wingerden household. We hosted Christmas this year for the first time in our new home. Events like this are usually just the pressure I need to get things whipped into shape.

So, for those of you who have found your way here to get a taste of our Christmas in 2010, I hope you are in for the long haul since there is much to share...

We'll start with picking out the Christmas tree...

It was a misty afternoon and not too cold....perfect for finding our tree...

We found a family run Christmas tree market just a little ways from our house.

After some debate {I am very picky when it comes to trees}, we chose one from the group above. I had big plans for this tree...and was very excited to get it home.

Only to realized it was about 2 1/2 feet too tall! After Josh sawed a good portion off of the bottom, it was the perfect size.

Then the next project was to flock it. Neither of us had ever done that before, but I have always loved the look of flocked trees. I found a kit online and Josh rigged up a way for us to use it {turned out we didn't have the right equipment which I didn't realize when I purchased it}.

And away we flocked...must have looked like a site to our neighbors with all of the white powder flying in the air as we sprayed the tree in our backyard.

We didn't have enough flocking to heavily coat it, just enough though to add a soft, lighter coloring to it.

Then it was on to decorating!

Only silver, white, and cream ornaments this year...with burlap garland.

White lights of course...as well as several religious inspired and handmade ornaments...

I purchased the beautiful ex-voto "Mary Did You Know" tags from Ozma of Odds on Etsyand adore them. They were a perfect addition to our tree.

As you might notice if you are a regular here, we have made some changes in the living room...like painting the walls {finally! The color is now "puff" gray. I was so sick of that 'macaroni and cheese' yellow - still have the office to do as you can see in the background}.

And we hung our chandelier...{haven't found the crystals yet...still lots of unpacking to do!}.

Another new addition this year was the mantel next to our tree. As I mentioned in my previous birthday post, Josh had planned on purchasing one as my gift.

When the one we really wanted ended up being sold before we got there, we decided to get creative with what was available.

I never thought we would go with a brown mantel, but the TV fits in it perfectly {which was one of my main goals}. We plan on mounting the TV on the wall inside the mantel and then I want to make up some linen curtains to go inside, so I can "tuck" it away whenever I don't want to look at it.

This year we had to improvise, however, so I was happy when I found the 'yule log' on cable, so we can enjoy a nice 'crackling fire' in the new mantel.

A fresh Boxwood wreath adorned our front door this year, and an old chalkware Jesus, found on the side of the road, rested by the mantel - to remind us of the true meaning for our celebration.

After the tree and mantel were situated, we had a lot of work to do in the dinning room to get it ready for serving 11 people.

First thing I wanted put up was the chandelier I purchased last spring on Craigslist. It has been stored away since we purchased it, and I have been dying to see it up with all the crystals on it...

Josh painstakingly cleaned each strand and put it up for me. I sure do love that man.

I also worked hard decorating and cleaning up our hutch {but that really was the fun part}...

I filled it with greenery, antique white pottery and other special touches...

Our new vintage dining set, that we also purchased last spring and had in storage until we moved in, thankfully came with three leaves. We felt like royalty with how long it was, as I set the table and got it prepared for our guests.

I got to put out my new butter dish given to me for my birthday from my Aunt Maureen, and Josh picked up the bouquet of flocked branches at Wegmans. I split it in two for one bouquet on each end of the table.

Thankfully my mother helped me with the cooking and many of our guests brought hors d'oeuvres and desserts.

For dinner we served cranberry stuffed turkey breasts, ham and lasagna rolls, along with a cranberry vinaigrette salad and several side dishes. It was quite a production, but overall came together wonderfully and all seemed to have a good time.

Earlier that day we exchanged gifts between the three of us {Josh, myself and Renoir of course}. Renoir went first and was quite the spoiled guy that day.

Even got a new gray bed for the floor in the living room {although he is still preferring his "romantic" bed}...

Josh got me an old clothes wringer that I spotted at the antique shop down the road from us awhile back...not sure what I will do with it yet but it sure looks cute!

And I got Josh an old printing press box to store his jewelry and supplies in...

We were also blessed to receive several other wonderful gifts from our family and cards sent in from some of you lovely Ladies...thank you so much! We cherished them dearly and have them displayed in our dining room.

I even received a special gift in the mail from Maren of Maren's Hus a few days before Christmas. A beautiful handmade Christmas ornament...

It's beautiful and even has images on both sides. Thank you so much Maren for your thoughtfulness! :)

We have been truly blessed this year in so many ways and are so grateful for all of our family and friends.

I wish all of you a very Happy New Year ahead and can't wait to share more exciting news from our home and life in 2011!

October 05, 2010

The leaves are changing drastically by the day, and there is a definite chill in the air. It has only been in the forties this week so we have already started utilizing our pellet stove. It certainly keeps the house cozy and warm.

Joshua and I celebrated our 4 year anniversary on Friday, October 1st, and since we just made the biggest purchase of our lives, we are trying to stick to a tight budget.

But that does not mean there is a lack of romance here.

We just have to go about it a little more creatively...

This year, Joshua suggested going out to dinner, but the day of, I decided to surprise him with a home cooked meal and a little autumn romance...

I found a box with some of my favorite items including antique lace and a crocheted runner, some vintage cameras and old glass bottles...

I went down in the {fully packed} basement to scrounge up some white sparkling lights to decorate the dining room and added a sheer lace curtain to the doorway...

Outside, I collected a bouquet of wild flowers...and some colorful leaves to scatter about the table...

I did notice a friend or two from outside decided to join us...but I made sure it was just Joshua and me come dinner time...

September 27, 2010

As soon as there is even a hint of fall in the air, I get in the mood to bake. I love making breads, cakes, cookies, etc.

Now with the new house...and new kitchen...I have been even more in the mood for testing it out.

I decided to challenge myself last week and bake my first pie...a pecan pie.

I saw this delectable recipe on an episode of Katie Brown's Workshop. It intrigued me because it had cream cheese in it, which I had never heard of in a pecan pie before.

I went to the store and picked up all of the ingredients {but did cheat and get premade pie dough...I am not that brave yet!}...

Another recipe that I saw, recommended toasting the nuts before baking, so I decided to do that.

The Katie Brown recipe called for both pecans and walnuts, so while the oven was preheating, I popped the nuts in to toast for a bit.

After letting them cool, I chopped the pecans and then put together the first batch of ingredients for the bottom layer of the pie including the cream cheese...

Next, I mixed together the nuts, dark corn syrup and remaining ingredients in another bowl...

Now, I am not an expert baker by any stretch of the imagination.

And as it usually goes...I make some huge mistakes when I cook...

The first in this recipe...I did not have pie weights, and while I did generously pierce the crust with a fork for blink baking...it still puffed up quite a bit and shrunk a little.

I was nervous that the two layers would overflow the crust...

You first fill it with the cream cheese batch and then pour the nut batch over top. Thankfully they both fit without overflowing...

Then you are supposed to bake it at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes.

But...my next huge mistake...

The pie crust was supposed to prebake for 10-11 minutes at 450 degrees.

I forgot to lower the temp for the pie. Just popped it in the oven...

And then about 20 minutes later I could hear the nuts sizzling a bit, so I went to check and realized the error of my ways. It was very dark and the crust was browning.

I pulled it out immediately and lowered the temp to 300 waiting a bit...and then, since I wasn't sure if it was completely done, put it back in for about 10 minutes with foil covering the top...

I was a bit devastated at first thinking that I had completely ruined it and wasted all of these ingredients. I tried hard not to get too upset over it and just let it cool and see later if it tasted okay. It wasn't burnt so that was a good sign.

Turned out that it tasted delicious. The husband loved it as did my sister and her fiance when they came for a visit.

Just goes to prove that you can make huge mistakes sometimes, and things can still work out.

The perfect dessert with some French Vanilla tea on a crisp, autumn afternoon.

Here is the recipe {and link} from the Katie Brown site if you feel like spending some time baking a pie this season. I will definitely try this recipe again...but hopefully without the same mistakes ;)...

Copyright Information

Blog design, photographs and content copyright Alice W. 2009-2012 unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved. Please do not use any images or content without permission. I don't mind sharing but do like being asked first ;). Thank you.